KR20170118814A - Pump unit and manufacturing method thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

A pump unit capable of reducing the number of parts and simplifying the manufacturing procedure, and a method of manufacturing the pump unit. The pump unit 1 includes a pump 2 having a discharge mechanism 5 for discharging fluid according to the operation of the piezoelectric element 4 and the piezoelectric element 4 and a valve mechanism 3 . The discharge mechanism 5 and the valve mechanism 3 are arranged such that a plurality of metal plates 22 to 37 are diffusion bonded to each other in a state in which a plurality of metal plates 22 to 37 are stacked in a predetermined stacking direction Respectively, and are fixed to each other by diffusion bonding.

Description

Pump unit and manufacturing method thereof

The present invention relates to a pump of a positive displacement type for discharging a fluid by changing the volume in a pump chamber and a valve unit for regulating the flow of the fluid through the pump when the pressure on the upstream side of the pump increases.

As the pump unit, for example, an assembly of a micro pump described in Patent Document 1 is known.

The assembly includes a pump having a piezoelectric element and a discharge mechanism for discharging the fluid in accordance with the operation of the piezoelectric element, a substrate to which the pump is attached, and a gasket provided between the pump and the substrate.

The discharge mechanism includes a pump-side diaphragm for partitioning the pump chamber between the pump body and the pump body, an introduction valve provided in the introduction passage formed in the pump body so as to be connected to the pump chamber, and an outlet passage formed in the pump body to be connected to the pump chamber And a relief valve installed therein.

The diaphragm on the pump vibrates according to the operation of the piezoelectric element, whereby the volume of the pump chamber is repeatedly increased and decreased.

The introduction valve opens when the pressure on the upstream side of the introduction valve is higher than the pressure in the pump chamber. The relief valve opens when the pressure in the pump chamber is higher than the pressure on the downstream side of the relief valve.

Accordingly, when the volume of the pump chamber increases due to the vibration of the pump-side diaphragm, the inlet valve is opened and the outlet valve is closed, and the fluid is sucked into the pump chamber through the inlet passage. On the other hand, when the volume of the pump chamber decreases due to the vibration of the pump-side diaphragm, the introduction valve is closed and the relief valve is opened to extract the fluid from the pump chamber through the relief passage.

As described above, since the introduction valve and the relief valve are opened when the pressure on the upstream side is higher than the pressure on the downstream side, there is a fear that the fluid will not be drawn through the relief passage when the pressure on the upstream side of the pump rises .

Therefore, the substrate is provided with a valve mechanism for regulating the flow of the fluid when the pressure in the introduction path rises.

Specifically, the valve mechanism includes a valve mechanism body having an inlet-side connecting passage connected to the inlet passage and an outlet-side connecting passage connected to the outlet passage, and a valve mechanism body provided in the valve mechanism body so as to divide the inlet-side connecting passage and the outlet- And a valve-side diaphragm.

The valve-side diaphragm is pushed in the direction of closing the outlet side connecting passage by the pressure difference when the pressure in the inlet side connecting passage is higher than the pressure in the outlet side connecting passage. Thus, when the pressure on the upstream side of the pump rises, the flow of the fluid through the outlet side passage is regulated.

However, in the pump unit described in Patent Document 1, the pump is attached to the valve mechanism (substrate) via the gasket. The gasket is for sealing between the pump and the valve mechanism. The gasket is formed by supplying an uncured elastomer by screen printing and then heating and hardening the uncured elastomer.

As described above, since the pump unit of Patent Document 1 is provided with the gasket, the number of parts of the pump unit is increased and a process for forming a gasket between the pump and the valve mechanism is required, and the manufacturing procedure of the pump unit becomes troublesome .

Patent Document 1: JP-A-2013-117213

An object of the present invention is to provide a pump unit capable of reducing the number of components and simplifying the manufacturing procedure, and a manufacturing method thereof.

Means for Solving the Problems In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a pump unit comprising: a pump having a piezoelectric element and a discharge mechanism for discharging fluid according to the operation of the piezoelectric element; and a valve mechanism attached to the pump, At least one introduction valve provided in an introduction passage formed in the pump body so as to be connected to the pump chamber, and at least one introduction valve provided in the pump body so as to be connected to the pump chamber, Wherein the valve mechanism includes a valve mechanism body having an inlet side connecting passage connected to the introduction passage and an outlet side connecting passage connected to the outlet passage, Side diaphragm provided on the valve mechanism body so as to divide the leading-side connecting passage, Wherein the introduction valve opens when the pressure on the upstream side of the introduction valve is higher than the pressure in the pump chamber and the relief valve opens when the pressure in the pump chamber is higher than the pressure on the downstream side of the relief valve, Side connection passage when the pressure in the inlet-side connection passage is higher than the pressure in the outlet-side connection passage, and the discharge mechanism and the valve mechanism are arranged in a stacked state in a predetermined stacking direction And a plurality of metal plates which are diffusion bonded to each other, and are fixed to each other by diffusion bonding.

A manufacturing method of a pump unit according to the present invention is characterized by comprising a preparation step of preparing a plurality of metal plates for forming the discharge mechanism and the valve mechanism, a bonding step of diffusion-bonding the plurality of metal plates, And an attaching step of attaching the piezoelectric element.

According to the present invention, the number of parts of the pump unit can be reduced and the manufacturing procedure can be simplified.

1 is a perspective view showing the entire configuration of a pump unit according to a first embodiment of the present invention.
2 is a plan view of the pump unit shown in Fig.
3 is a sectional view taken along line III-III in Fig.
Fig. 4 is a sectional view showing the operation of the pump unit shown in Fig. 2, showing a state in which fluid is introduced into the pump chamber.
Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing the operation of the pump unit shown in Fig. 2, showing a state in which fluid is drawn out from the pump chamber.
Fig. 6 is a sectional view showing the operation of the pump unit shown in Fig. 2, showing a state in which the derivation of the fluid is restricted by the valve-side diaphragm.
7 is an exploded perspective view of the pump unit of FIG.
8 is an exploded perspective view of the chamber portion of Fig.
9 is an exploded perspective view of the middle portion of Fig.
10 is an exploded perspective view of the valve body portion of FIG.
Fig. 11 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of part of Fig. 2. Fig.
12 is a plan view showing an example of a connecting metal plate usable for manufacturing the pump unit according to the first embodiment.
Fig. 13 is a view corresponding to Fig. 2 showing a modification of the first embodiment.
14 is a view corresponding to Fig. 2 showing a modification of the first embodiment.
15 is a graph showing the relationship between the flow rate and the pressure (back pressure) of the pump unit according to the first embodiment.
16 is a graph showing the relationship between the flow rate and the frequency of the pump unit according to the first embodiment.
17 is a graph showing the relationship between time and flow rate for explaining air leakage in the pump unit according to the first embodiment.
18 is an exploded perspective view of an intermediate portion of the pump unit according to the second embodiment of the present invention.
19 is an exploded perspective view of a valve body portion in the pump unit according to the second embodiment of the present invention.
Fig. 20 shows a cross-sectional view taken along the line XX of Fig. 18 and a cross-sectional view along the line XX of Fig.
FIG. 21 is a sectional view taken along the line XXI in FIG. 18, and a chamber portion is added.
22 is a plan view showing the introduction valve according to the first embodiment.
23 is a plan view showing the introduction valve according to the second embodiment.
24 is a plan view showing a state in which the fourteenth to sixteenth metal plates in the valve body portion according to the first embodiment are viewed from the valve-side diaphragm side.
25 is a plan view showing a state in which the fourteenth and fifteenth metal plates in the valve body portion according to the second embodiment are viewed from the valve-side diaphragm side.
26 is a graph showing the relationship between the flow rate and the pressure (back pressure) of the pump unit according to the second embodiment.
27 is a graph showing the relationship between flow rate and frequency of the pump unit according to the second embodiment.
28 is a plan view showing a modified example of the introduction valve in the pump unit according to the second embodiment.
29 is a plan view showing a modification of the introduction valve in the pump unit according to the second embodiment.
30 is a plan view showing a modification of the introduction valve in the pump unit according to the second embodiment.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. The following embodiment is an embodiment of the present invention and is not intended to limit the technical scope of the present invention.

≪ First Embodiment (Figs. 1 to 12)

A pump unit 1 according to a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Figs. 1 to 3. Fig. 2 is a plan view of the pump unit 1 of Fig. 1 in a state in which the piezoelectric element 4 is omitted.

The pump unit 1 includes a pump 2 for discharging fluid and a valve mechanism 3 for regulating the flow of the fluid through the pump 2 when the pressure of the fluid on the upstream side of the pump 2 increases Respectively.

The pump 2 has a piezoelectric element 4 and a discharge mechanism 5 for discharging the fluid in accordance with the operation of the piezoelectric element 4.

The discharge mechanism 5 includes a pump main body 8 and a pump side diaphragm 9 for partitioning the pump chamber S1 between the pump main body 8 and the pump main body 8, An introduction valve 14 provided in the four introduction passages 13 (only one of which is shown in Fig. 3) formed in the pump chamber S1, and a relief valve 14 provided in the derivation passage 16 formed in the pump body 8 to be connected to the pump chamber S1 17).

The pump chamber S1 is a substantially circular space in plan view (see Fig. 2). The outlet passage 16 is a passage which is connected to the center of the pump chamber S1 when viewed in plan view. The four introduction passages 13 are provided every 90 degrees around the center axis J (see Fig. 3) of the pump chamber S1. The introduction passage 13 is disposed inside the pump chamber S1 in a plan view of the pump unit 1 along the central axis J (an axis parallel to the stacking direction of the metal plates 22 to 37 to be described later) And a portion disposed on the outer side of the pump chamber S1 when seen in plan view. The outlet passage 16 is disposed inside the pump chamber S1 when seen in plan view.

The pump main body 8 is provided with an introduction valve seat 15 for closing the introduction passage 13 with the introduction valve 14 and an introduction valve seat 15 for closing the introduction passage 16 between the introduction valve 17 and the introduction valve seat 15. [ (18).

The introduction valve 14 is brought into close contact with the introduction valve seat 15 to close the introduction passage 13 when the pressure on the upstream side of the introduction valve 14 is equal to or lower than the pressure in the pump chamber S1. On the other hand, the introduction valve 14 is elastically deformed when the pressure on the upstream side of the introduction valve 14 is higher than the pressure in the pump chamber S1, thereby moving away from the introduction valve seat 15 to open the introduction passage 13. [

The relief valve 17 is in close contact with the relief valve seat 18 to close the relief passage 16 when the pressure in the pump chamber S1 is equal to or lower than the pressure at the downstream side of the relief valve 17. On the other hand, the relief valve 17 elastically deforms when the pressure in the pump chamber S1 is higher than the pressure on the downstream side of the relief valve 17, thereby moving the relief passage 16 away from the relief valve seat 18.

The valve mechanism 3 includes a valve 2 having an inlet side connecting passage 10 connected to the inlet passage 13 of the pump 2 and an outlet side connecting passage 11 connected to the outlet passage 16 of the pump 2, And a valve-side diaphragm 7 provided in the valve mechanism body 6 so as to divide the instrument body 6, the inlet side connecting passage 10 and the outlet side connecting passage 11. [

The valve-side diaphragm 7 is disposed concentrically with the pump-side diaphragm 9 and is disposed inside the pump chamber S1 at the time of planarization (see Fig. 2). The valve-side diaphragm 7 is disposed in parallel with the pump-side diaphragm 9. The inlet passage 13 and the outlet passage 16 of the pump 2 are provided between the diaphragms 7 and 9, respectively.

The inlet side connection passage 10 extends from the introduction passage 13 of the pump 2 to a position opposite to the pump 2 of the valve side diaphragm 7 by the valve side diaphragm 7, And opens at the end face of the main body 6 opposite to the pump 2.

Specifically, the inlet-side connection passage 10 includes four connected portions 10d (only one is shown in Fig. 3) 10d connected to the four introduction passages 13 of the pump body 8, A first extending portion 10c extending parallel to the central axis J from an end farthest from the center axis J of the outer case 10c and a second extending portion 10c extending from the outer disposed portion 10c toward the central axis J And a lead-in portion 10a connected to the four second extending portions 10b. That is, the fluid introduced from the inlet portion 10a is divided into four second extended portions 10b and flows, and the second extended portion 10b, the first extended portion 10c, and the connected portion 10d And is led to the introduction passage 13 of the pump 2.

Here, a part of the connected portion 10d, the entire first extended portion 10c, and a part of the second extended portion 10b of the inlet side connection passage 10 are formed on the outer side of the pump chamber S1 And the other portion is disposed inside the pump chamber S1 in a plan view.

The outlet side connection passage 11 extends from the outlet passage 16 of the pump 2 toward the valve side diaphragm 7 and extends from the central axis J along the surface of the valve side diaphragm 7 Side diaphragm 7 and opens at an end surface of the valve mechanism body 6 opposite to the pump 2, as shown in Fig.

Specifically, the lead-out side connection passage 11 includes a connected portion 11a connected to the lead-out passage 16 of the pump main body 8 and a connected portion 11a connecting the end portion of the connected portion 11a on the valve- The first extending portion 11b extending in the direction away from the central axis J and the end extending away from the central axis J of the first extending portion 11b and being parallel to the central axis J Two second extending portions (only one is shown in Fig. 3) 11c extending in the direction in which the both extending portions 11c extend, and a lead-out portion 11d joining the both extending portions 11c. The fluid led out from the pump chamber S1 to the connected portion 11a flows through the first extended portion 11b into the two second extended portions 11c and flows together again at the lead portion 11d to be led out do. The contact portion 11a is provided with a stopper 12 for holding the relief valve 17 at a preset open position when the relief valve 17 is opened.

A part of the first extending portion 11b, the entirety of the second extending portion 11c, and a part of the lead-out portion 11d of the lead-out side connection passage 11 are formed on the outside of the pump chamber S1 And the other portion is disposed inside the pump chamber S1 in a plan view.

The valve-side diaphragm 7 functions as a wall for partitioning a part of the introduction side connection passage 10 (a part of the introduction part 10a and the second extension part 10b) (The portion to be connected 11a and the portion of the extending portion 11b).

The valve mechanism body 6 is provided with a valve seat 38 for regulating the flow of the fluid through the outlet side connection passage 11 by the valve side diaphragm 7 being in contact therewith.

The valve-side diaphragm 7 is provided at a distance from the valve seat 38. The valve-side diaphragm 7 is elastically deformed to come in contact with the valve seat 38 when the pressure in the inlet side connection passage 10 is higher than a predetermined reference pressure higher than the pressure in the outlet side connection passage 11 .

Therefore, when the pressure in the inlet side connection passage 10 is lower than the reference pressure, the flow of the fluid through the outlet side connection passage 11 is allowed, while when the pressure in the inlet side connection passage 10 is higher than the reference pressure The flow of the fluid through the outlet side connection passage 11 is regulated.

Hereinafter, the operation of the pump unit 1 will be described with reference to Figs. 3 to 6. Fig.

In the stopped state of the pump unit 1 shown in Fig. 3, when AC power is supplied to the piezoelectric element, the pump-side diaphragm 9 vibrates with the operation of the piezoelectric element.

Specifically, as shown in Fig. 4, when the pump-side diaphragm 9 is displaced in the direction in which the pump chamber S1 expands, the pressure on the upstream side of the inlet valve 14 becomes higher than the pressure in the pump chamber S1, The valve 14 is opened while the pressure in the pump chamber S1 is lower than the pressure on the downstream side of the relief valve 17 so that the relief valve 17 is closed. As a result, the fluid is introduced (sucked) into the pump chamber S1.

5, when the pump-side diaphragm 9 is displaced in the direction in which the pump chamber S1 is contracted, the pressure on the upstream side of the inlet valve 14 becomes lower than the pressure in the pump chamber S1, The valve 14 is closed while the pressure in the pump chamber S1 is higher than the pressure on the downstream side of the relief valve 17 so that the relief valve 17 is opened. Thereby, the fluid is drawn out from the pump chamber S1.

Since the gap between the valve-side diaphragm 7 and the valve seat 38 is formed, when the valve-side diaphragm 7 is opened to the valve seat 38 so as to open when the pressure in the outlet-side connection passage 11 becomes high, It is possible to prevent occurrence of pressure loss at the time of fluid derivation.

6, when the pressure in the inlet side connection passage 10 becomes equal to or higher than the reference pressure, the valve side diaphragm 7 elastically deforms and comes into close contact with the valve seat 38, 11 is regulated.

The valve-side diaphragm 7 is reliably elastically deformed when the pressure in the inlet side connection passage 10 becomes equal to or higher than the reference pressure, although the pressure-receiving areas on both sides of the valve-side diaphragm 7 are set to be the same. The reason for this is that the introduction side connection passage 10 and the introduction side connection passage 11 are formed by the pressure loss of the introduction side connection passage 10 itself and the pressure loss at the time of opening the introduction valve 14 and the release valve 17 A pressure difference corresponding to the reference pressure may be generated. Side diaphragm 7 is set to be smaller than the pressure-receiving area on the inlet side connection passage 10 side of the valve-side diaphragm 7, the valve-side diaphragm 7 is brought into close contact with the valve seat 38 Side diaphragm 7 is pressed against the valve seat 38 in accordance with the difference in hydraulic pressure area between the inlet side and the outlet side of the valve-side diaphragm 7. [

3, the discharging mechanism 5 and the valve mechanism 3 of the pump unit 1 are configured such that a plurality of metal plates 22 to 37 are stacked in the stacking direction parallel to the center axis J Is formed by diffusion bonding of the plurality of metal plates 22 to 37, and is fixed to each other by diffusion bonding.

Specifically, the discharge mechanism 5 is formed of metal plates 22 to 28, and the valve mechanism 3 is formed of metal plates 29 to 37. [

3 and 8, the first metal plate 22 has a circular through hole 22a passing through the first metal plate 22 in the stacking direction, and a through hole 22a extending from the through hole 22a. And four extended portions 22b extending outward in the radial direction.

The through hole 22a defines the movable region of the pump-side diaphragm 9 in the second metal plate 23. [ In the through hole 22a, the piezoelectric element 4 is arranged (see Fig. 3).

The extension portion 22b is a portion for connecting the piezoelectric element 4 and the power source. Concretely, as shown in Fig. 11, a connection layer 23b is formed on the surface of the second metal plate 23 (the surface opposite to the pump chamber S1) with an insulating layer 23a interposed therebetween. The first connecting portion 4a provided on the piezoelectric element 4 is electrically connected to the connected layer 23b and the second connecting portion 4b is formed on the surface of the piezoelectric element 4 opposite to the first connecting portion 4a, Respectively. The extending portion 22b opens the connected layer 23b at the lateral position of the piezoelectric element 4. Therefore, one pole of the power source (not shown) can be connected to the connected layer 23b and the other pole of the power source can be connected to the second connecting portion 4b.

Referring again to Figs. 3 and 8, the second metal plate (metal plate for the pump-side diaphragm) 23 includes the pump-side diaphragm 9. Fig.

The third metal plate (metal plate for a pump chamber) 24 has a through hole (pump chamber hole) 24a for defining the pump chamber S1.

3 and 9, the fourth metal plate 25 includes four through-holes 25a forming a part of the introducing passageway 13 and a through-hole 25b forming a part of the introducing passageway 16. [ . Each of the through holes 25a forms a space for allowing the introduction valve 14 to elastically deform toward the pump chamber side.

The fifth metal plate 26 includes the above-described four introduction valves 14 and has a through hole 26a that forms a part of the lead-out passage 16.

The sixth metal plate (27) has a through hole (27a) that forms a part of the lead passage (16). The four introduction valve sheets 15 described above are formed on one surface of the sixth metal plate 27 and the above described intake valve seat 15 is provided on the other surface of the sixth metal plate 27 18 (omitted in Fig. 9) are formed. In the introduction valve seat 15 of the sixth metal plate 27, a through hole (not shown) for forming a part of the introduction passage 13 is provided.

The seventh metal plate 28 has four through holes 28a that form a part of the introducing passageway 13 and a through hole 28b that forms a part of the leading passageway 16. [ In the through hole 28b of the seventh metal plate 28, the above-described relief valve 17 is provided. The relief valve 17 has a closing portion (not shown) for closing the relief passage 16 and an arm (not shown) connecting portions of the closing portion and the seventh metal plate 28 other than the closed portion And has substantially the same shape as the introduction valve 50A shown in Fig.

The eighth metal plate 29 has four through holes 29a that form a part of the connected portion 10d of the inlet side connecting passage 10 and a part of the connected portion 11a of the outlet side connecting passage 11 And a through hole 29c for forming a part of the first extended portion 11b of the lead-out side connection passage 11. The through-

The ninth metal plate 30 has four through holes 30a that form a part of the first extended portion 10c of the inlet side connection passage 10 and a connected portion 11a of the outlet side connection passage 11, And a through hole 30c that forms a part of the first extended portion 11b of the lead-out side connection passage 11. The through hole 30b forms a part of the lead- In the through hole 30b of the ninth metal plate 30, a stopper 12 is provided.

The tenth metal plate 31 has four through holes 31a that form a part of the first extended portion 10c of the inlet side connection passage 10 and a connected portion 11a of the outlet side connection passage 11, And a through hole 31c that forms a part of the first extended portion 11b of the lead-out side connection passage 11. The through hole 31b forms a part of the lead- The tenth metal plate 31 corresponds to a metal sheet for a valve seat having a valve seat 38 (not shown in Fig. 9) provided on the periphery of the through hole 31b.

3 and 10, the eleventh metal plate 32 includes four through holes 32a that form a part of the first extended portion 10c of the inlet side connection passage 10, A through hole 32b that forms a part of the first extended portion 11b of the lead-out side connection passage 11 and two through holes 32c that form a part of the second extended portion 11c of the lead- . The eleventh metal plate 32 has a through hole 32b defining a movable region of the valve-side diaphragm 7 on the twelfth metal plate 33 toward the lead-out side connection passage 11, It corresponds to metal plate. The 11th metal plate 32 has a through hole (gap hole) 32b that penetrates the eleventh metal plate 32 in the stacking direction and has a gap 32b between the valve side diaphragm 7 and the valve seat 38, As shown in Fig. Further, the four through holes 32a are arranged on the outside of the pump chamber S1 when seen from the plane (see Fig. 2).

The twelfth metal plate (metal plate for valve-side diaphragm) 33 includes the valve-side diaphragm 7. The twelfth metal plate 33 has four through holes 33a that form a part of the first extended portion 10c of the inlet side connection passage 10 and a second extension 33b of the outlet side connection passage 11, And two through holes 33b forming part of the portion 11c.

The thirteenth metal plate 34 is provided with four through holes 34a forming a part of the first extended portion 10c of the inlet side connection passage 10 and four through holes 34a forming the inlet side connection passage 10, Side through-hole 34b forming a part of the second extending portion 11c of the lead-out side connecting passage 11 and a through hole 34b forming a part of the second extending portion 10b of the lead- 34c. The through hole 34b corresponds to the introduction-side defining hole defining the movable area of the twelfth metal plate 33 toward the inlet side connecting passage 10 side of the valve-side diaphragm 7. [

The fourteenth metal plate 35 has four through holes 35a which form a part of the first extended portion 10c of the inlet side connection passage 10 and four inlet holes 35a which form part of the inlet portion 10a of the inlet side connection passage 10, A through hole 35b that forms a part of the extended portion 10b and a through hole 35c that forms a part of the lead portion 11d of the lead side connection passage 11. [

The fifteenth metal plate 36 has a through hole 36a that forms a part of the inlet 10a of the inlet side connection passage 10 and a part of the outlet 11d of the outlet side connection passage 11 And has a through hole 36b.

The sixteenth metal plate 37 has a through hole 37a for forming a part of the lead-in portion 10a of the lead-in side connecting passage 10 and a through hole 37a for forming a part of the leading portion 11d of the lead- And has a hole 37b.

In Figs. 8 to 10, each of the first to 16th metal plates 22 to 37 is shown one by one, but for the metal plate having the same shape as the surface and the back surface, it is also possible to use a plurality of such metal plates . For example, Fig. 3 shows an example in which a plurality of eighth metal plates 28 and ninth metal plates 29 are used. A plurality of different metal plates may be used. On the other hand, it is also possible to use a metal plate having a large thickness in advance, but in this case, the surface roughness of the metal plate becomes large, which is disadvantageous for diffusion bonding. Therefore, it is preferable to increase the thickness of the metal plate by using a plurality of thin metal plates as described above.

2 and 3, in the plan view of the pump unit 1 along the stacking direction (central axis J) as described above, the valve-side diaphragm 7 is located at the center of the pump-side diaphragm 9 Respectively. 10) 32b of the eleventh metal plate 32 and the through holes (the introducing-side defining hole: see Fig. 10) 34b of the thirteenth metal plate 34 are arranged in a plan view (The hole for the pump room: see Fig. 8) 24a of the third metal plate 24 in the first through third holes 24a and 24b. The inlet side connection passage 10 and the outlet side connection passage 11 are arranged between the diaphragms 7 and 9 so as to be located in the inside of the diaphragm 9 on the pump side A connected portion 10d of the connection passage 10 and a portion of the connected portion 11a and the first extended portion 11b of the lead-out side connecting passage 11; hereinafter also referred to as an inwardly arranged portion).

Here, in the diffusion bonding, it is necessary to apply pressure in a stacking direction to a plurality of laminated metal plates, but pressure can not effectively be transmitted to the portion of the metal plate that overlaps the pump side diaphragm 9 (pump chamber S1: space) It is difficult to form the inwardly arranged portions of both connection passages 10 and 11 by diffusion bonding.

3 and 7, the pump unit 1 includes the chamber portion 19 including the first to third metal plates 22 to 24, the eleventh to the sixteenth metal plates 32 to 37 And a middle portion 20 between the chamber portion 19 and the valve body portion 21. The valve body portion 21 includes a valve body portion 21 and a valve body portion 21,

Hereinafter, a method of manufacturing the pump unit 1 will be described.

First, the metal plates 25 to 37 shown in Figs. 3 and 8 to 10 are prepared (preparing step).

Specifically, in the preparing step, the eleventh metal plate 32 defining the movable region of the valve-side diaphragm 7 and the pump chamber S1 (the third metal plate 24) among the thirteenth metal plate 34 10, in order to form the inlet side connecting passage 10 and the outlet side connecting passage 11, a plurality of through holes (passage forming holes) 32a and 32c (not shown) are formed in addition to the through holes 32b, ) Is prepared.

9, through holes (communication holes) 32a and 32c having a peripheral portion which can be brought into close contact with the periphery of the through-hole (first passage-forming hole) 32a are formed in the plurality of through- (Adjacent metal plate) 31 provided with the first metal plate 31a.

Next, the metal plates 25 to 37 are subjected to diffusion bonding (bonding step).

Specifically, as shown in Fig. 7, the joining step is an intermediate joining step (first joining step) for diffusing and joining those included in the middle portion 20 of the metal plates 25 to 37 and a joining step A valve body joining step of subjecting the chamber portion 19, the valve body portion 21, and the intermediate portion 20 to a diffusion bonding, (A second joining step).

In the intermediate joining step, as shown in Figs. 3 and 9, the intermediate portion 20 is subjected to diffusion bonding separately from the chamber portion 19 and the valve body portion 21. As shown in Fig. Therefore, among the both connection passages 10 and 11 formed in the intermediate portion 20, a portion overlapping with the pump chamber S1 and the through holes 32b and 34b in the plan view can be surely formed by diffusion bonding have.

In the chamber bonding step, as shown in Figs. 3 and 8, the first to third metal plates 22 to 24 are bonded. In addition, the chamber bonding step may be omitted, and the first to third metal plates 22 to 24 may be bonded to the chamber part 19 in the entire bonding step to be described later.

In the valve body bonding step, as shown in Figs. 3 and 10, the 11th to 16th metal plates 32 to 37 are subjected to diffusion bonding.

The order of the intermediate joining step, the chamber joining step, and the valve body joining step is not limited to the above-described order.

Then, in the entire bonding step, the chamber portion 19, the intermediate portion 20, and the valve body portion 21 are subjected to diffusion bonding.

Specifically, in the entire bonding step, as shown in Figs. 2, 3 and 7, the through holes (gap holes) 32b of the valve seat 38 and the eleventh metal plate (gap metal plate) 32 Diffusion bonding is performed with the eleventh metal plate 32 interposed between the twelfth metal plate 33 and the tenth metal plate (metal sheet for valve seat) 31 overlapping with the stacking direction. As a result, a gap is formed between the valve seat 38 and the valve-side diaphragm 7.

In the entire joining step, the through-holes (leading-side defining holes) 32b of the eleventh metal plate 32 and the through-holes (the introduction-side defining holes) 34b of the thirteenth metal plate 34 Diffusion bonding is performed in a state in which it is disposed inside the through hole (pump chamber hole) 24a of the three metal plates 24. [ As a result, the valve-side diaphragm 7 is disposed inside the pump-side diaphragm 9 at the time of planarization, so that the pump unit 1 can be formed compactly in the direction perpendicular to the stacking direction.

In the entire joining step, the through holes (passage forming holes) 32a and 32c of the eleventh metal plate 32 are arranged outside the through holes 24a of the third metal plate 24 in plan view (Fig. 2 state), the intermediate portion 20 and the valve body portion 21 are subjected to diffusion bonding. Thereby, the pressure applied to the metal plates 22 to 37 in the entire bonding step can be transferred to the other metal plate via the portion of the third metal plate 24 outside the through hole 24a. Therefore, the eleventh metal plate 32 and the tenth metal plate 31 can be diffusion-bonded to the peripheral portion of the through hole 32c.

2, since the extension portion 22b formed on the first metal plate 32 is provided at a position overlapping with the through hole 32a in plan view, the extension portion 22b It is difficult to effectively transmit the pressure applied to the metal plates 22 to 37 around the through hole 32a during the entire bonding process (pressure is applied to the cross-hatched portion in Fig. 2).

3, 7 and 9, in the entire joining step, the periphery of the through hole 32a of the eleventh metal plate 32 and the periphery of the through hole 31a of the tenth metal plate 31, And the tenth metal plate 31 and the eleventh metal plate 32 are diffusion bonded to each other in a state in which they are in close contact with each other. This makes it possible to suppress the leakage of the fluid from between the through hole 32a and the through hole 31a by the close contact of both peripheral portions even in a form in which it is difficult to sufficiently transfer the pressure as described above.

As shown in Fig. 11, a layer forming step (step) of forming a layer 23b to be connected via an insulating layer 23a to the surface of the second metal plate 23 opposite to the pump chamber S1 . In the layer forming step, the insulating layer 23a and the layer to be connected 23b are formed over the range extending from the through hole 22a of the first metal plate 22 to the extended portion 22b.

The attaching step of attaching the piezoelectric element 4 to the second metal plate 23 is performed in a state in which the first connecting portion 4a of the piezoelectric element 4 is electrically connected to the connected layer 23b .

7 to 10, a method of manufacturing one pump unit 1 has been described. However, by employing the following method, a plurality of pump units 1 can be efficiently manufactured.

More specifically, as shown in Fig. 12, in the preparing step, a plurality of connecting metal plates 39 (each of which is a plurality of metal plates 22 to 37) ).

Then, in the bonding step, the connecting metal plates 39 are diffusion-bonded. As a result, a plurality of assemblies of the discharge mechanism 5 and the valve mechanism 3 are formed. Further, the bonding step may include the intermediate bonding step, the chamber bonding step, and the valve body bonding step described above.

After the bonding step, a cutting and separating step for separating the bonded body from the connecting metal plate 39 is performed.

Thereafter, in the adhering step, the piezoelectric element 4 is attached to the second metal plate 23. Further, the attaching step may be performed before the separating step.

As a result, the plurality of pump units 1 can be manufactured without performing the joining step several times, so that the manufacturing efficiency of the pump unit 1 can be further improved.

As described above, the discharge mechanism 5 and the valve mechanism 3 are formed by diffusion-bonding a plurality of metal plates 22 to 37, respectively, and both the mechanisms 3 and 5 are formed by diffusion bonding And are fixed to each other. Therefore, it is possible to omit the step of bonding or the like for forming each of the discharging mechanism 5 and the valve mechanism 3, and it becomes unnecessary to form a gasket between the discharging mechanism and the valve mechanism as in the prior art.

According to the first embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.

When the pressure in the inlet side connection passage 10 is lower than the pressure at the time of deformation of the valve side diaphragm 7 (that is, when no abnormal pressure is generated in the inlet side connection passage 10), the outlet side connection passage 11 It is possible to prevent the pressure loss at the time of discharging the fluid, thereby realizing the discharge of the stable fluid.

Since the valve-side diaphragm 7 is provided inside the pump-side diaphragm 9 in the plan view, the pump unit 1 can be made compact in the direction orthogonal to the stacking direction, and the pump unit 1) can be improved.

An intermediate portion 20 laminated between an eleventh metal plate (a proximal metal plate) 32 and a second metal plate (a pump chamber metal plate) 23 among a plurality of metal plates 22 to 37, The intermediate portion 20 can reliably form the inner portion.

As shown in Fig. 2, the through holes (passage forming holes) 32a and 32c of the eleventh metal plate 32 are formed in the through holes (pump chamber holes) 24a of the second metal plate 24 in plan view, Even when the second metal plate 24 having the through hole 24a is interposed therebetween by diffusion bonding all of the plurality of metal plates 22 to 37 to the periphery of the through hole 32c, .

Therefore, it is possible to provide the pump unit 1 in which the inlet side connection passage 10 and the outlet side connection passage 11 are appropriately formed.

(A communicating hole) of the tenth metal plate (adjacent metal plate) 31 and the periphery of the through hole (the first passage forming hole) 32a of the eleventh metal plate 32, as shown in Figs. 9 and 10, Both of the metal plates 31 and 32 are diffusion-bonded in a state in which the peripheral portion of the metal plate 31a is closely contacted. 2, leakage of the fluid from the connecting portion of the through-holes 31a and 32a can be prevented by the close contact even if another metal plate having a hole at a position overlapping the through hole 32a is used, .

It is possible to prevent a current from flowing to the fluid in the pump chamber S1 by the insulating layer 23a of the second metal plate 23 and therefore the use of the fluid in which the flow of the fluid is restricted The pump unit 1 can be applied to the pump.

2, the extended portion 22b of the first metal plate 22 is formed at a position overlapping the through hole 32a of the eleventh metal plate 32. However, The position of the portion 22b is not limited to this.

The extension portion 22b may be formed at a position shifted from the through hole 32a as shown in Fig.

13, the tenth metal plate 31 and the eleventh metal plate 32 are securely joined to the peripheral portion of the through hole 32a in the entire joining step .

When the flow of electric current from the electric power source is allowed to flow to the fluid in the pump chamber S1, the expansion portion 22b may be omitted as shown in Fig.

In this case, the first connecting portion 4a (see Fig. 11) of the piezoelectric element 4 can be electrically connected directly to the second metal plate 23. In this state, one pole of the power source is electrically connected to the discharging mechanism 5 or a part of the valve mechanism 3, and the other pole of the power source is connected to the second connecting portion 4b of the piezoelectric element 4 The pump unit 1 can be driven by electrical connection.

≪ Second Embodiment >

First, the flow rate accuracy of the pump unit 1 according to the first embodiment will be described.

15 is a graph showing the relationship between the flow rate and the pressure (back pressure) of the pump unit 1 of the first embodiment. The pressure (back pressure) is the pressure on the downstream side of the relief valve 17. In FIG. 15, the rounded mark indicates a characteristic when a rectangular wave of 100 Hz (peak voltage + 240 V and lowest voltage-60 V) is used, and in FIG. 15, the broken line indicates the pump unit Which is an ideal characteristic of the structure of FIG. 15, triangular symbols indicate characteristics when a rectangular wave having a frequency of 50 Hz (maximum voltage + 240 V and minimum voltage-60 V) is used, and in FIG. 15, the broken line below indicates a characteristic And shows an ideal characteristic of the structure of the pump unit 1.

As shown in Fig. 15, the flow rate characteristics of the pump unit 1 of the first embodiment fell below the above-mentioned characteristics in the intermediate pressure range (about 5 to about 100 Kpa), and the linear characteristics were not obtained.

This point will be examined below.

In the first embodiment, the relief valve 17 is arranged at the center (central axis J) of the pump chamber S1 in plan view (see FIG. 3), and the center of the pump chamber S1 Four introduction valves 14 are arranged at a line-symmetrical position with respect to a straight line passing therethrough (see Fig. 9). This allows the fluid to flow uniformly from a plurality of places around the relief valve 17 to the relief valve 17, so that the sediment of the fluid in the pump chamber S1 can be reduced.

On the other hand, since the introduction valve 14 (see Fig. 3) closes the introduction passage 13 by utilizing the rigidity of the fifth metal plate 26, even when the introduction valve 14 is in the closed state, There is a risk of a slight leakage. In the first embodiment, since the four introduction valves 14 are provided, it is considered that the integrated leakage amount of the fluid through the introduction valve 14 is increased and the flow rate accuracy is lowered. 15, the flow characteristics are close to the above characteristics in a situation where the pressure (back pressure) is high (the situation in which the introduction valve 14 is pressed in the closed direction), because the introduction valve 14 It is thought that the closed state is stable.

The pump unit S1 according to the second embodiment of the present invention will be described later in detail. However, in the pump unit according to the second embodiment, the introduction valve 50 (see Fig. 18) Has also been improved.

16 is a graph showing the relationship between the flow rate and the frequency of the pump unit of the first embodiment. 15, the solid line indicates the flow rate when a rectangular wave (maximum voltage + 240 V and minimum voltage-60 V) is used for the pump unit 1 of the first embodiment. 15, the broken line indicates an ideal characteristic of the structure of the pump unit under the same conditions.

As shown in Fig. 16, the flow rate characteristics of the pump unit 1 of the first embodiment are below the above-mentioned characteristics in the region of about 90 to 150 Hz, and thus are not linear in characteristics.

The reason is that as shown in Fig. 22, the total length L1 of the introduction valve 14 in the first embodiment is long, that is, the spring constant is small. Specifically, the introduction valve 14 has a closing portion 14a for closing the introduction passage 13 and a closing portion 14a for closing the introduction passage 13 and the introduction passage 13, And an arm 14b for supporting the closing portion 14a so as to be displaceable. Since the arm 14b is longer than the closing portion 14a in the introduction portion 14, the spring constant of the arm 14b is relatively small. Therefore, when the frequency of the pump-side diaphragm 9 becomes relatively high, it is difficult to follow the closing portion 14a with respect to the pump-side diaphragm 9. [

23, in the pump unit according to the second embodiment, the total length L2 of the introduction valve 50 is made shorter than the total length L1 of the introduction valve 14 , Improvement of the flow rate characteristics with respect to the above-mentioned frequency is being promoted.

17 shows fluctuations in the flow rate when air is intentionally sucked into the pump unit 1 during the period in which the liquid is being discharged using the pump unit 1 according to the first embodiment. In Fig. 17, air is sucked at the beginning of the period t1 and at the beginning of the period t2. When the air is sucked, the air expands and shrinks due to the vibration of the pump-side diaphragm 9, so that it is not possible to discharge the flow rate of the liquid suitable for the fluctuation of the volume of the pump chamber S1. This phenomenon appears as a flow rate decrease in the period t1 and the period t2. In the end of the periods t1 and t3, it is considered that air is derived from the pump unit 1 because the flow rate is returned. Here, the period t1 is about 1 hour, and the period t3 is about 3 hours.

The reason why the long time is required for the air to escape is as follows. As shown in Fig. 24, the through hole 35a (the first extended portion 10c: see Fig. 3), which is caused by the abrupt change of the cross-sectional area of the passage of the fluid.

Specifically, in the first embodiment, there is a through hole 35b that is larger than the through hole 37a, which defines the movable region of the valve-side diaphragm 7, in the upper portion of the through hole 37a. Therefore, in the through hole 35b, the flow velocity of the fluid along the straight line connecting the through hole 37a and the through hole 35a becomes the highest, and the flow velocity in the region R1 indicated by the hatching between these straight lines becomes Lower. Therefore, it is considered that air stays in the region R1.

25, a through hole 76b for introducing a fluid into the through hole 73b defining the movable region of the valve-side diaphragm 47 is formed in the pump unit according to the second embodiment, And the through holes 73a and 74a for drawing the fluid from the through hole 73b are reduced, thereby improving the flow rate characteristics.

Hereinafter, the pump unit according to the second embodiment will be described with reference to Figs. 18 to 20. Fig. Since the piezoelectric element 4 and the chamber portion 19 in the pump unit according to the second embodiment have the same configuration as that of the first embodiment, they are shown only in Fig. 21, and a description thereof will be omitted.

Fig. 18 is a perspective view showing the intermediate portion 60 of the pump unit according to the second embodiment in an exploded manner. 19 is a perspective view showing the valve body portion 61 of the pump unit according to the second embodiment in an exploded manner. Fig. 20 shows a cross section taken along the line XX in Fig. 18 and a cross section taken along the line XX in Fig. 21 is a sectional view taken along the line XXI in Fig.

20 and 21, the pump unit includes a pump 42 for discharging the fluid and a pump 42 for discharging the fluid through the pump 42 when the pressure of the fluid on the upstream side of the pump 42 is increased And a valve mechanism (43) for regulating the flow rate.

The pump 42 has a discharging mechanism 45 for discharging the fluid in accordance with the operation of the piezoelectric element 4 and the piezoelectric element 4.

The discharge mechanism 45 has a pump side diaphragm 49 for partitioning the pump chamber S1 between the pump main body 48 and the pump main body 48 and a pump side diaphragm 49 for separating the pump main body 48 from the pump main body 48 Two introduction valves 50 provided in two formed introduction passages 56 and an extraction valve 51 provided in an extraction passage 58 formed in the pump main body 48 so as to be connected to the pump chamber S1.

The pump chamber S1 is a substantially circular space (not shown) in plan view. The outlet passage 58 is a passage which is connected to the center of the pump chamber S1 (on the central axis J) when seen in plan view. The two introduction passages 56 are provided at a position that is symmetrical with respect to a straight line passing through the center axis J of the pump chamber S1 (a position which is different from the central axis J by 180 degrees).

The introduction valve 50 is located at the center of the pump chamber S1 as seen from the plane and the introduction valve 50 is located at the center of the straight line passing through the center axis J of the pump chamber S1 Only two of them are provided at positions that are symmetrical with respect to the center line.

This makes it possible to evenly distribute the fluid from the plurality of places around the relief valve 51 to the relief valve 51 so that the sediment of the fluid in the pump chamber S1 is reduced while the number of the relief valves 50 The amount of accumulated leakage through the inlet valve 50 in the closed state can be minimized.

The introduction passage 56 and the output passage 58 are disposed inside the pump chamber S1 in a plan view of the pump unit along the center axis J (direction of stacking of the metal plates 65 to 76 to be described later) .

The pump main body 48 is provided with an introduction valve seat 57 for closing the introduction passage 56 with the introduction valve 50 and an introduction valve seat 57 for closing the introduction passage 58 between the introduction valve 50 and the introduction valve 50, (59).

The introduction valve 50 is brought into close contact with the introduction valve seat 57 to close the introduction passage 56 when the pressure on the upstream side of the introduction valve 50 is equal to or lower than the pressure in the pump chamber S1. On the other hand, the introduction valve 50 is elastically deformed when the pressure on the upstream side of the introduction valve 50 is higher than the pressure in the pump chamber S1, thereby moving away from the introduction valve seat 57 and opening the introduction passage 56.

The relief valve 51 is in close contact with the relief valve seat 59 to close the relief passage 58 when the pressure in the pump chamber S1 is equal to or lower than the pressure on the downstream side of the relief valve 51. [ On the other hand, the relief valve 51 is elastically deformed when the pressure in the pump chamber S1 is higher than the pressure on the downstream side of the relief valve 51, thereby moving away from the relief valve seat 59 to open the relief passage 58.

23, the relief valve 51 includes a closing portion 50a for closing the introducing passage 56 (for bringing it into close contact with the introducing valve seat 57) and a closing portion 50b for closing the introducing passage 56 And an arm 50b for supporting the closing portion 50a so that the closing portion 50a can be displaced between the state in which the introduction passage 56 is opened and the state in which the introduction passage 56 is opened. The length L2 from the proximal end of the arm 50b to the distal end of the closing portion 50a of the relief valve 51 is equal to the length L2 of the arm 14b of the relief valve 14 of the first embodiment Is shorter than the length L1 from the proximal end to the distal end of the closing portion 14a. Since the closing portion 14a of the first embodiment has substantially the same size as the closing portion 50a of the second embodiment, the difference between the length L1 and the length L2 is determined by the length of the arm 14b and the length of the arm 50b ).

This makes it possible to increase the spring constant of the relief valve 51 (particularly, the arm 50b) as compared with the relief valve 14 of the first embodiment. Therefore, when the frequency of the pump-side diaphragm 49 increases It is possible to improve the followability of the closing portion 50a.

The valve mechanism 43 includes a valve 42 having an inlet side connection passage 52 connected to the inlet passage 56 of the pump 42 and an outlet side connection passage 53 connected to the outlet passage 58 of the pump 42 And a valve-side diaphragm 47 provided in the valve mechanism main body 46 so as to divide the introduction side connection passage 52 and the output side connection passage 53. The valve-

The valve-side diaphragm 47 is disposed concentrically with the pump-side diaphragm 49 and is disposed inside the pump chamber S1 at the time of plan view (not shown). The valve-side diaphragm 47 is disposed in parallel with the pump-side diaphragm 49. The inlet passage 56 and the outlet passage 58 of the pump 42 are provided between the diaphragms 47 and 49, respectively.

The introduction side connection passage 52 extends from the introduction passage 56 of the pump 42 to a position opposite to the pump 42 of the valve side diaphragm 47 by the valve side diaphragm 47, And opens at the end face of the main body 46 opposite to the pump 42. [

Specifically, the inlet-side connection passage 52 is connected to both of the two introduction passages 56 of the pump main body 48, and a connected portion 52d (see Fig. 18 (The respective portions of the metal plate 70 in Fig. 18) farthest from the central axis J of the connected portion 52d are parallel to the central axis J A second extending portion 52b extending from the first extending portion 52c in a direction orthogonal to the center axis J and a second extending portion 52b extending from the end of the second extending portion 52, And an introducing portion 52a extending in parallel with the center axis J from the center axis J. The first extended portion 52c and the lead-in portion 52a are disposed on the opposite sides of the diagonal line of the metal plates 73 to 76 shown in Fig. 20, the fluid introduced from the introducing portion 52a flows in a direction perpendicular to the central axis J through the second extending portion 52b and flows through the first extending portion 52c to the central axis J, (Refer to Fig. 18), and is branched into two flows and is attracted to the two introduction passages 56 of the pump 42. In this case, as shown in Fig.

Here, a part of the connected portion 52d, the entire first extended portion 52c, a part of the second extended portion 52b, and the entirety of the lead-in portion 52a among the lead- And is disposed on the outside of the pump chamber S1, and the other portion is disposed on the inside of the pump chamber S1 in plan view.

20, the outlet side connection passage 53 extends from the outlet passage 56 of the pump 42 toward the valve-side diaphragm 47, and extends along the surface of the valve-side diaphragm 7 Side diaphragm 49 extends in the direction away from the axis J and returns to the pump-side diaphragm 49 side parallel to the central axis J and extends in the direction perpendicular to the center axis J, And opens at the end face of the valve mechanism body 46 on the opposite side of the pump 42.

Specifically, the lead-out side connection passage 53 has a portion 53a connected to the lead passage 58 of the pump main body 48 and a portion 53a extending from the end on the valve side diaphragm 47 side of the connected portion 53a, A first extending portion 53b extending in a direction away from the axis J and a second extending portion 53b extending in the direction parallel to the center axis J from an end farther from the central axis J of the first extending portion 53b, Side diaphragm 49 and a third extending portion 53c extending in the direction orthogonal to the central axis J from the end on the pump side diaphragm 49 side of the second extending portion 53c, 18) extending from the end portion farther from the central axis J of the third extending portion 53d and extending from the end portion in parallel with the central axis J (see FIG. 18) 53e (see the metal plates 71 and 72 in Fig. 18). The fluid led out from the pump chamber S1 to the connected portion 53a is led to the side of the valve-side diaphragm 47 through the extending portions 53b to 53d and led out through the lead-out portion 53e. The contact portion 53a is provided with a stopper 54 for holding the relief valve 51 at a preset open position when the relief valve 51 is opened.

The entirety of the third extended portion 53d and the extended portion 53e of the lead-out side connection passage 53 are arranged on the outer side of the pump chamber S1 in plan view, And is disposed inside the pump chamber S1.

The valve-side diaphragm 47 functions as a wall for partitioning a part of the introduction side connection passage 52 (a part of the introduction part 52a and the second extension part 52b) (The portion to be connected 53a and the portion of the first extending portion 53b).

The valve mechanism body 46 is provided with a valve seat 55 for regulating the flow of the fluid through the outlet side connection passage 53 by the valve side diaphragm 47 being in contact therewith.

The valve-side diaphragm 47 is spaced apart from the valve seat 55. The valve-side diaphragm 47 is elastically deformed to come into contact with the valve seat 55 when the pressure in the inlet side connection passage 52 is higher than a predetermined reference pressure higher than the pressure in the outlet side connection passage 53 .

Therefore, when the pressure in the inlet side connection passage 52 is lower than the reference pressure, the flow of the fluid through the outlet side connection passage 52 is allowed, while when the pressure in the inlet side connection passage 52 is higher than the reference pressure The flow of the fluid through the outlet side connection passage 52 is regulated.

Hereinafter, the operation of the pump unit will be described with reference to Figs. 20 and 21. Fig.

When AC power is supplied to the piezoelectric element, the pump-side diaphragm 49 vibrates with the operation of the piezoelectric element.

When the pump-side diaphragm 49 is displaced in the direction in which the pump chamber S1 expands, the introduction valve 50 is opened while the relief valve 51 is closed. As a result, the fluid is introduced (sucked) into the pump chamber S1.

On the other hand, when the pump-side diaphragm 49 is displaced in the direction in which the pump chamber S1 is contracted, the introduction valve 50 is closed while the relief valve 51 is opened. Thereby, the fluid is drawn out from the pump chamber S1.

Side diaphragm 47 is elastically deformed and comes into close contact with the valve seat 55 when the pressure in the inlet side connection passage 52 becomes equal to or more than the reference pressure so that the flow of the fluid through the outlet side connection passage 53 is regulated do.

18 and 19, the discharge mechanism 45 and the valve mechanism 43 of the pump unit are arranged so that the plurality of metal plates 65 to 76 (including the metal plates 22 to 24 of FIG. 8) Are formed by the diffusion bonding of the plurality of metal plates 65 to 76 in a state of being laminated in the lamination direction parallel to the axis J and are fixed to each other by diffusion bonding.

Specifically, the discharging mechanism 45 is formed by the metal plates 22 to 24 (see FIG. 8) and the metal plates 65 to 68, and the valve mechanism 43 is formed by the metal plates 69 to 76. Since the metal plates 22 to 24 are the same as those in the first embodiment, their description is omitted.

18 and 21, the fourth metal plate 65 has two through-holes 65a forming a part of the introducing passage 56 and a through-hole 65b forming a part of the lead-out passage 58. [ . The through hole 65a forms a space for allowing the introduction valve 51 to elastically deform toward the pump chamber side.

The fifth metal plate 66 includes the above-described two introduction valves 50 and has a through-hole 66a that forms a part of the lead-out passage 58. [

The sixth metal plate (67) has a through hole (67a) which forms a part of the lead passage (58). The two introduction valve sheets 57 described above are formed on one surface of the sixth metal plate 67 and the derivation valve sheet 59 (the second valve plate 59) is formed on the other surface of the sixth metal plate 67 18 are omitted). In the introduction valve seat 57 of the sixth metal plate 67, a through hole (not shown) for forming a part of the introduction passage 56 is provided.

The seventh metal plate 68 has two through holes 68a forming a part of the introducing passage 56 and a penetrating name 68b forming a part of the leading passage 58. [ In the through hole 68b of the seventh metal plate 68, the above-described relief valve 51 is provided. The relief valve 51 has a closing portion (not shown) for closing the lead-out passage 58 and an arm (not shown) connecting portions of the closing portion and the seventh metal plate 68 other than the closed portion And has substantially the same shape as the introduction valve 50A shown in Fig.

18 and 20, the eighth metal plate 69 includes two through holes 69a forming a part of the connected portion 52d of the inlet side connecting passage 52, two connecting holes 69b connecting the outlet side connecting passage 53, And a through hole 69b that forms a part of the contacted portion 53a of the contact portion 53a.

The ninth metal plate 70 forms a part of the connection portion 53a of the lead-out side connection passage 53 and the through hole 70a that forms a part of the connection portion 52d of the introduction side connection passage 52 And a through hole 70c that forms a third extended portion 53d of the lead-out side connection passage 53. The through-hole 70c is a through- In the through hole 70b of the ninth metal plate 70, a part of the stopper 54 is provided.

The tenth metal plate 71 has a through hole 71a which forms a part of the first extended portion 52c of the inlet side connection passage 52 and a part of the connected portion 53a of the outlet side connection passage 53 A through hole 71c constituting a part of the second extending portion 53c of the leading side connecting passage 53 and a leading portion 53e of the leading side connecting passage 53, And a through hole 71d which forms a part of the through hole 71d. In the through hole 71b of the tenth metal plate 71, a part of the stopper 54 is provided.

The eleventh metal plate 72 has a through hole 72a which forms a part of the second extended portion 52c of the inlet side connection passage 52 and a part of the connected portion 53a of the outlet side connection passage 53 A through hole 72c that forms a part of the second extended portion 53c of the lead side connection passage 53 and a through hole 72c that forms a part of the lead portion 53e of the lead side connection passage 53, And has a through hole 72d that forms a part. The valve seat 55 (not shown in FIG. 18) described above is provided on the valve-side diaphragm 47 side of the first metal plate 72.

19 and 20, the twelfth metal plate 73 includes a through hole 73a that forms a part of the first extended portion 52c of the inlet side connection passage 52, A through hole 73b that forms the first extended portion 53b of the lead-out side connection passage 53 and a through hole 73c that forms a part of the lead-out portion 53e of the lead- The twelfth metal plate 73 has a through hole 73b defining a movable area toward the lead-out side connection passage 53 side of the valve-side diaphragm 47 of the thirteenth metal plate 74, For example. The twelfth metal plate 73 has a through hole (gap hole) 32b that penetrates the twelfth metal plate 73 in the stacking direction and is provided between the valve side diaphragm 47 and the valve seat 55 And corresponds to a gap metal plate for forming a gap. The through holes 73a and 73c are disposed outside the pump chamber S1 (not shown) in plan view.

The thirteenth metal plate (metal plate for the valve-side diaphragm) 74 includes the valve-side diaphragm 47. The thirteenth metal plate 74 has a through hole 74a which forms a part of the first extended portion 52c of the introduction side connection passage 52 and a through hole 74b which forms a part of the lead portion 53e of the lead side connection passage 53 And a through hole 74b that forms a part.

The fourteenth metal plate 75 has a through hole 75a that forms a part of the second extended portion 52b of the inlet side connection passage 52 and a part of the lead portion 53e of the outlet side connection passage 53 And has a through hole 75b. The through hole 75a corresponds to the introduction side defining hole defining the movable region toward the inlet side connecting passage 52 side of the valve side diaphragm 47 in the thirteenth metal plate 74. [

The fifteenth metal plate 76 has a concave portion 76a that forms a part of the second extended portion 52b of the inlet side connection passage 52 and a recessed portion 76b that is provided in the recessed portion 76a, And a through hole 76c that forms a part of the lead-out portion 53e of the lead-out side connection passage 53, which is provided outside the concave portion 76a . The bottom surface of the concave portion 76a of the fifteenth metal plate 76 is provided with the above-mentioned protrusion 52e protruding toward the valve-side diaphragm 47 side.

The introduction portion 52a, the second extension portion 52b, and the introduction portion 52b of the introduction side connection passage 52 formed by the twelfth to fifteenth metal plates 73 to 76 are described with reference to Figs. 19, 20, 1 extended portion 52c will be described.

The fourteenth metal plate 75 and the fifteenth metal plate 76 are joined to the thirteenth metal plate 74 (the valve plate side diaphragm metal plate) to define a regulating portion 77a (Concave portion formed by the through hole 75a and the concave portion 76a) including the concave portion 77 (see Fig. 25). In the present embodiment, an example in which the concave metal plate is constituted by two metal plates 75 and 76 is described, but a concave metal plate in which the prescribed concave portion 77 is formed by a single metal plate may be formed.

Here, the defining portion 77a is a portion of the prescribed concave portion 77 overlapping the through hole 73b of the twelfth metal plate 73 in plan view.

A through hole 76b (corresponding to the first connection hole) of the fifteenth metal plate 76 connected to the prescribed concave portion 77 and a through hole 74a (corresponding to the second connection hole) of the thirteenth metal plate 74 ) Is connected to the prescribed concave portion 77 on the outside of the defining portion 77a in plan view and is smaller than the specified portion 77a in the plan view.

The prescribed concave portion 77 extends from the specified portion 77a to the through holes 76b and 74a at the time of planarization and has a pair of tapered shapes extending toward the through holes 76b and 74a And an extension portion 77b.

As described above, the specified concave portion 77 of the concave metal plate including the pair of extending portions 77b and the defining portion 77a has a cross-sectional area (a cross-sectional area) between the through hole 76b and the through- . Concretely, the cross-sectional area of the prescribed concave portion 77 becomes larger from the through hole 76b toward the specified portion 77a in plan view, and the prescribed concave portion 77 extends from the specified portion 77a toward the through hole 74a. Sectional area becomes smaller.

Here, at a position overlapping with the defining portion 77a on the line connecting the through hole 76b and the through hole 74a at the time of plan view, the bottom surface of the prescribed recess 77 is moved toward the valve-side diaphragm 47 And a projecting protrusion 52e is provided on the concave metal plate. As a result, the protruding portion is provided at the portion where the flow path cross-sectional area is largest in the prescribed concave portion 77 formed on the concave metal plate as described above, so that the cross-sectional area of the portion is reduced and the flow velocity distribution in the prescribed concave portion 77 Can be suppressed.

Specifically, when the protruding portion 52e is not provided, the flow velocity of the fluid on the straight line connecting the through hole 76b and the through hole 74a becomes the highest, and on the other hand, The flow velocity of the fluid in the region R2 shown in Fig. 25 is decreased. In this situation, air may remain in the region R2. However, since the protruding portion 52e is provided, the flow velocity of the fluid in the region R2 is increased , It is possible to prevent the air from staying in the region R2.

18 and 19, one fourth sheet of each of the fourth to fifteenth metal plates 65 to 76 is shown. However, for a metal sheet having the same shape of the front surface and the back surface, a plurality of such metal sheets may be stacked. On the other hand, it is also possible to use a metal plate having a large thickness in advance, but in this case, the surface roughness of the metal plate becomes large, which is disadvantageous for diffusion bonding. Therefore, it is preferable to increase the thickness of the metal plate by using a plurality of thin metal plates as described above.

As described above, in the plan view, the valve-side diaphragm 47 is provided inside the pump-side diaphragm 49. 19) 73b of the twelfth metal plate 73 and the through hole (the introduction-side defining hole: see Fig. 19) 75b of the fourteenth metal plate 75 A part is disposed inside the through hole (pump chamber hole: see Fig. 8) 24a of the third metal plate 24 in a plan view. The inlet side connection passage 52 and the outlet side connection passage 53 have portions which are disposed inside the diaphragm 49 on the pump side between the both diaphragms 47 and 49 in plan view.

Therefore, the pump unit according to the second embodiment is provided with the chamber part 19 including the first to third metal plates 22 to 24 and the 12th to 15th metal plates 73 to 73, 76 and a middle portion 60 between the chamber portion 19 and the valve body portion 21. The valve body portion 61 is formed by dividing the valve body portion 19 into two portions.

Specifically, in the preparing step, the twelfth metal plate 73 defining the movable region of the valve-side diaphragm 47 and the pump chamber S1 (the third metal plate 24) among the fourteenth metal plate 75 19, in order to form the inlet side connecting passage 52 and the outlet side connecting passage 53, a plurality of through holes (passage forming holes) 52c and 53e (not shown) are formed in addition to the through holes 73b, ) Is prepared.

18, the through holes (52c, 53e) having through holes (52c, 53e) having peripheries which can be brought into close contact with the periphery of the through-holes (An adjacent metal plate) 72 having the holes (holes) 72a and 72d is prepared.

Next, the metal plates 65 to 76 are subjected to diffusion bonding (bonding step).

Specifically, the joining step is an intermediate joining step (first joining step) for diffusing and joining those included in the middle portion 60 of the metal plates 65 to 76 (see Fig. 18) A valve body joining step for subjecting the valve body portion 61 to diffusion bonding and a valve body joining step for diffusively joining the valve body portion 61 and the valve body portion 61 (see FIG. 8) (61), and the intermediate portion (60).

In the intermediate joining step, as shown in Fig. 18, the intermediate portion 60 is diffused and joined separately from the chamber portion 19 and the valve element portion 61. [ Therefore, of the both connection passages 52 and 53 formed in the intermediate portion 60, a portion overlapping the pump chamber S1 and the through holes 73b, 75a and 76b at the time of planar formation is securely formed can do.

In the chamber bonding step, as shown in Figs. 8 and 21, the first to third metal plates 22 to 24 are bonded. In addition, the chamber bonding step may be omitted, and the first to third metal plates 22 to 24 may be bonded to the chamber part 19 in the entire bonding step to be described later.

In the valve body bonding step, as shown in Figs. 19 and 20, the twelfth to fifteenth metal plates 73 to 76 are subjected to diffusion bonding.

The order of the intermediate joining step, the chamber joining step, and the valve body joining step is not limited to the above-described order.

Then, in the entire bonding step, the chamber portion 19, the intermediate portion 60, and the valve body portion 61 are subjected to diffusion bonding.

18 to 20, the through holes (gap holes) 73b of the valve sheet 55 and the twelfth metal sheet (gap metal plate) 73 are arranged in the stacking direction Diffusion bonding is performed in a state where the twelfth metal plate 73 is sandwiched between the thirteenth metal plate 74 and the eleventh metal plate (metal plate for valve seat) Thereby, a gap is formed between the valve seat 55 and the valve-side diaphragm 47.

In the entire joining step, the through holes (the leading side prescribed holes) 73b of the twelfth metal plate 73 and the through holes (the introduction side prescribed holes) 75a of the fourteenth metal plate 75 in the plan view Diffusion bonding is performed in a state in which the first metal plate 77a (see FIG. 25) is disposed inside the through hole (pump chamber hole) 24a of the third metal plate 24. This allows the valve-side diaphragm 47 to be disposed inside the pump-side diaphragm 49 in a plan view, so that the pump unit 1 can be formed compact in a direction perpendicular to the stacking direction.

In the entire bonding step, the through holes (passage forming holes) 73a and 73c of the twelfth metal plate 73 in plan view are disposed outside the through holes 24a of the third metal plate 24 , The intermediate portion 20 and the valve body portion 21 are subjected to diffusion bonding. Thereby, the pressure applied to the metal plates 22 to 24 and 65 to 76 in the entire bonding step can be transferred to the other metal plate via the portion outside the through hole 24a of the third metal plate 24 . Therefore, the twelfth metal plate 73 and the eleventh metal plate 72 can be diffusion-bonded to portions around the through holes 73a and 73c.

On the other hand, as in the first embodiment, in the second embodiment, since the extension portion 22b formed on the first metal plate 32 is provided at a position overlapping with the through holes 73a and 73c in plan view, It is difficult to effectively transmit the pressure applied to the metal plates 22 to 24 and 65 to 76 around the through holes 73a and 73c due to the presence of the space in the extension portion 22b.

Therefore, in the entire joining step, the periphery of the through holes 73a and 73c of the twelfth metal plate 73 and the periphery of the through holes 72a and 72d of the eleventh metal plate 72 are formed in the same manner as in the first embodiment The eleventh metal plate 72 and the twelfth metal plate 73 are diffusion bonded to each other. This makes it possible to suppress the leakage of the fluid from between the through holes 72a and 72d and the through holes 73a and 73c by the close contact of both peripheral portions even in a form in which it is difficult to sufficiently transfer the pressure as described above.

11, an insulating layer 23a is formed on the surface of the second metal plate 23 opposite to the pump chamber S1 to form a connected layer (not shown) via the insulating layer 23a, as in the first embodiment, 23b are formed. In the layer forming step, the insulating layer 23a and the layer to be connected 23b are formed over the range extending from the through hole 22a of the first metal plate 22 to the extended portion 22b.

The attaching step of attaching the piezoelectric element 4 to the second metal plate 23 is performed in a state in which the first connecting portion 4a of the piezoelectric element 4 is electrically connected to the connected layer 23b .

A plurality of pump units according to the second embodiment can also be manufactured at the same time by adopting a method using a metal plate corresponding to the connecting metal plate 39 shown in Fig. 12 of the first embodiment.

As described above, according to the second embodiment, in addition to the effects of the first embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.

25, the prescribed concave portion 77 of the fourteenth metal plate 75 and the fifteenth metal plate 76 (concave metal plate) has a cross-sectional area between the through holes 76b and 74a in plan view Change.

Here, in the second embodiment, in a plan view, a straight line connecting the through hole 76b and the through hole 74a is formed at a position overlapping with the defining portion 77a from the bottom surface of the prescribed concave portion 77 A protruding portion 52e projecting toward the valve-side diaphragm 47 is provided. This makes it possible to reduce the cross-sectional area of the portion and to suppress unevenness in the flow velocity distribution in the prescribed concave portion 77 by providing the projection portion 52e at the portion where the flow path cross-sectional area is largest in the prescribed concave portion 77 .

Therefore, as shown in Fig. 17, in the first embodiment, 1 to 3 hours (period t1 or t2) is required for drawing air, whereas in the second embodiment, air is supplied for a period of several seconds to several tens of seconds . As a result, for example, it is possible to suppress the retention of the air in a situation where the liquid is flowing as the fluid, and to suppress the deterioration of the flow accuracy.

In the second embodiment, as shown in Figs. 18 and 21, the outflow valve 51 is provided at the center of the pump chamber S1 in the plan view, and only the two introduction valves 50 are provided in the plane Symmetrical with respect to a straight line passing through the center in the case where the center of gravity is in the vicinity of the center.

This allows the fluid to flow uniformly from the two portions around the relief valve 51 to the relief valve 51, so that only the sediment of the fluid in the pump chamber S1 can be reduced.

By providing the four introduction valves 14 in the same manner as in the first embodiment by limiting the number of the introduction valves 50 to two, it is possible to reduce the pressure (back pressure) due to accumulation of the leakage amount of the introduction valve 14 The deterioration of the flow accuracy (see Fig. 15) can be improved.

Specifically, according to the second embodiment, as shown in Fig. 26, the characteristic that the flow rate changes linearly with respect to the pressure (back pressure) can be obtained. The solid line in Fig. 26 indicates a case of using a frequency of 100 Hz, the broken line of Fig. 26 is a case of using a frequency of 150 Hz, and the one-dot chain line of Fig. 26 is a case of using a frequency of 200 Hz.

In the second embodiment, the introduction valve 50 having the length L2 shorter than the length L1 of the introduction valve 14 of the first embodiment shown in Fig. 22 is employed. Specifically, the arm length of the introduction valve 50 is set to be shorter than the arm length of the introduction valve 14.

The introduction valve 14 of the first embodiment can not follow the introduction valve 14 in accordance with the volume change of the pump chamber S1 when the pump side diaphragm 9 operates at a relatively high frequency because the spring constant of the introduction valve 14 of the first embodiment is small, It is considered that this causes deterioration of the flow rate performance with respect to frequency (see Fig. 16).

On the other hand, in the second embodiment, since the spring constant of the introduction valve 50 is higher than that of the first embodiment, even when the pump-side diaphragm 49 operates at a relatively high frequency, Therefore, the introduction valve can be followed.

As a result, as shown in Fig. 27, in the pump unit of the second embodiment, it is possible to obtain a flow rate characteristic that changes linearly with respect to increase or decrease in frequency. Fig. 27 shows data obtained under the same conditions as the flow characteristics in Fig. 16 (conditions using a rectangular wave (maximum voltage +240 V and minimum voltage -60 V)).

In addition, the shape of the introduction valve 50 in the second embodiment is not limited to that shown in Fig. For example, even when the introduction valves 50a to 50c shown in Figs. 28 to 30 are used, it is possible to obtain flow characteristics that change linearly with respect to increase or decrease in frequency.

Specifically, the introduction valve 50a shown in Fig. 28 includes a closing portion 50c for closing the introduction passage 56, and a closing portion 50c for closing the introduction passage 56 and the introduction passage 56, And three arms 50d that support the closing portion 50c so that the arm 50c can be displaced.

The closing portion 50c is supported at three places by the arm 50d. Thereby, as compared with the introduction valve 14 shown in Fig. 22 having the closing portion 14a supported by one arm 14b, the introduction valve 50a is provided with three arms 50d, One spring constant can be set high.

In addition, the arm 50d has a shape bent at a plurality of places different from the arm 50b. Further, the arms 50d are arranged at equal intervals in three places around the closing portion 50c. This spring shape and the arrangement of the arm 50d can further increase the spring constant.

The introduction valve 50b shown in Fig.29 has a closing portion 50e for closing the introduction passage 56 and a closing portion 50e for closing the introduction passage 56 and the introduction passage 56. [ And an arm 50f for supporting the closing portion 50c so as to be displaceable. The closing portion 50e refers to a substantially circular portion (indicated by a two-dot chain line in the figure) having an area equivalent to that of the closing portions 50a, 50c of the inlet valves 50, 50a.

The length L4 of the introduction valve 50b is set to be slightly shorter than the length L2 of the introduction valve 50 (see FIG. 23).

The introduction valve 50c shown in Fig. 30 has a through hole 50g added to the arm 50f of the introduction valve 50b shown in Fig. As a result, the spring constant of the introduction valve 50 c) is adjusted to be slightly lower.

Further, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and for example, the following aspects may be employed.

Although the eleventh metal plate 32 having the through hole 32b defining the movable area on the side of the outlet side connection passage 11 of the valve side diaphragm 7 is exemplified as the proximity metal plate in the above embodiment, A thirteenth metal plate 34 having a through hole 34b for defining a movable area on the side of the inlet side connection passage 10 of the first metal plate 7 may be used as a nearby metal plate. In this case, the positional relationship between the inlet-side connecting passage 10 and the outlet-side connecting passage 11 with respect to the valve-side diaphragm 7 is reversed.

The connecting layer 23b is formed on the surface of the second metal plate 23 opposite to the pump chamber S1 with the insulating layer 23a interposed therebetween as shown in Fig. (23b) is provided in the pump unit. For example, is electrically connected to the first connecting portion 4a of the piezoelectric element 4 and extends from the first connecting portion 4a to the end face of the piezoelectric element 4 on the second connecting portion 4b side The connected layer may be provided in advance in the piezoelectric element 4. [ In this case, the step of providing the connected layer 23b to the pump unit can be omitted.

In addition, the above-described concrete embodiments mainly include the following inventions.

Means for Solving the Problems In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a pump unit comprising: a pump having a piezoelectric element and a discharge mechanism for discharging fluid according to the operation of the piezoelectric element; and a valve mechanism attached to the pump, Side diaphragm for partitioning a pump chamber between the pump main body and the pump main body; at least one introduction valve provided in an introduction passage formed in the pump main body to be connected to the pump chamber; Wherein the valve mechanism includes a valve mechanism body having an inlet side connection passage connected to the introduction passage and an outlet side connection passage connected to the release passage formed in the main body, Side diaphragm provided on the valve mechanism body so as to divide the output side connecting passage and the valve side diaphragm, Wherein the introduction valve opens when the pressure on the upstream side of the introduction valve is higher than the pressure in the pump chamber, and the relief valve opens when the pressure in the pump chamber is higher than the pressure on the downstream side of the relief valve, Side connection passage when the pressure in the inlet-side connection passage is higher than the pressure in the outlet-side connection passage, and the discharge mechanism and the valve mechanism are arranged in a stacked state in a predetermined stacking direction And a plurality of metal plates which are diffusion bonded to each other, and are fixed to each other by diffusion bonding.

According to the pump unit of the present invention, the discharge mechanism and the valve mechanism are formed by diffusion bonding a plurality of metal plates, respectively, and both mechanisms are fixed to each other by diffusion bonding. Therefore, it is possible to omit the step of bonding or the like for forming each of the discharge mechanism and the valve mechanism, and it becomes unnecessary to form a gasket between the discharge mechanism and the valve mechanism as in the conventional case.

A manufacturing method of a pump unit according to the present invention is characterized by comprising a preparation step of preparing a plurality of metal plates for forming the discharge mechanism and the valve mechanism, a bonding step of diffusion-bonding the plurality of metal plates, And an attaching step of attaching the attaching step.

As described above, according to the present invention, the number of components of the pump unit can be reduced and the manufacturing procedure can be simplified.

In this case, the outlet-side connecting passage may be closed by the valve-side diaphragm in a state where there is no pressure difference between the inlet-side connecting passage and the outlet-side connecting passage. In this case, Pressure diaphragm is opened when the valve-side diaphragm for discharging the valve-side diaphragm is opened, which makes it difficult to discharge the stable fluid.

Therefore, in the pump unit, the valve mechanism body further includes a valve seat for regulating the flow of the fluid through the outlet-side connection passage by the valve-side diaphragm being in contact with the valve-side diaphragm, Side connection passage so as to be deformed when the pressure in the inlet-side connection passage is higher than the pressure in the outlet-side connection passage, so as to have elasticity capable of contacting the valve seat.

According to this aspect, since the outlet side connection passage is opened when the pressure in the inlet side connection passage is lower than the pressure at the time of deformation of the valve side diaphragm (that is, when no abnormal pressure is generated in the inlet side connection passage) It is possible to realize discharge of stable fluid by preventing occurrence of pressure loss.

In the above-described method for manufacturing the pump unit, the valve mechanism body further includes a valve seat for regulating the flow of fluid through the outlet side connection passage by the valve-side diaphragm being in contact with the valve side diaphragm, A metal plate for a valve seat having the valve seat and a gap metal plate having a gap hole penetrating the gap metal plate as the gap metal plate in the stacking direction is prepared, The diffusion bonding is performed in a state in which the valve seat and the gap hole overlap in the stacking direction and the gap metal plate is sandwiched between the metal plate for the valve-side diaphragm and the metal plate for the valve seat, The diaphragm is characterized in that the pressure in the inlet- By modifying the time higher than the pressure in the connection passage may be employed a method having elasticity capable of contact with the valve seat.

According to this aspect, a pump unit capable of preventing the occurrence of pressure loss as described above can be manufactured by spreading and joining such a metal plate in a state in which a gap metal plate is sandwiched between a metal plate for a valve seat and a metal plate for a valve diaphragm .

Here, the valve-side diaphragm may be provided outside the pump-side diaphragm in a plan view of the pump unit along the stacking direction, but in this case, since the pump unit becomes large in the direction perpendicular to the stacking direction, The degree of freedom of the layout of the display device is reduced.

Therefore, in the pump unit, the plurality of metal plates may include: a metal plate for a pump chamber having a pump chamber hole defining the pump chamber; a valve-side diaphragm metal plate including the valve-side diaphragm; Side diaphragm is provided with an introduction-side defining hole for defining a movable region toward the inlet-side connection passage side of the valve-side diaphragm; and an introduction-side defining metal plate joined to the valve-side diaphragm metal plate, Side defining bore formed with a leading-side defining hole for defining a movable region toward the passage side, wherein the introduction-side defining bore and the leading-side defining bore are formed in such a manner that, in a plan view of the pump unit along the stacking direction And is disposed inside the pump chamber hole.

According to this aspect, since the valve-side diaphragm is provided inside the pump-side diaphragm in the plan view, the pump unit can be made compact in the direction orthogonal to the stacking direction, and the degree of freedom in layout of the pump unit Can be improved.

The method of manufacturing a pump unit according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein in the preparation step, a metal plate for a pump chamber in which a pump chamber hole for defining the pump chamber is formed, a valve-side diaphragm metal plate including the valve-side diaphragm, A guide-side defining metal plate provided with a guide-side defining hole defining a movable area toward the passage side, and a guide-side defining metal plate provided with a guide-side defining hole defining a movable area of the valve-side diaphragm toward the guide- And in the joining step, diffusion bonding is performed in a state in which the introduction-side defining hole and the output-side defining hole are disposed inside the pump room hole in a plane view of the pump unit along the stacking direction Can be adopted.

According to this aspect, it is possible to manufacture a pump unit capable of improving the degree of freedom of layout as described above by performing diffusion bonding in a state in which the introduction-side defining hole and the outputting-side defining hole are positioned with respect to the pump room hole.

As described above, when the valve-side diaphragm is provided inside the pump-side diaphragm in the plan view, the introduction-side connection passage (introduction-side defining hole) or the lead-out connection passage A prescribed hole) is disposed. That is, the introduction-side connection passage or the introduction-side connection passage has a portion (hereinafter referred to as an inner arrangement portion) disposed inside the pump chamber at the time of planarization between the valve-side diaphragm and the pump-side diaphragm.

Here, in the diffusion bonding, it is necessary to apply pressure in a stacking direction to a plurality of laminated metal plates, but it is impossible to effectively transmit pressure to a portion overlapping the pump chamber (space) of the metal plate, It is difficult to form the inner-side disposition portion by diffusion bonding.

Therefore, in the pump unit, the metal plate near the metal plate for the pump room, of the introduction-side specifying metal plate and the drawing-out specifying metal plate, It is preferable that only a plurality of passage forming holes are provided besides the prescribed hole or the above described leading side prescribed hole and that the plurality of passage forming holes are arranged outside the pump room hole as viewed from the above plane.

According to this aspect, the plurality of metal plates laminated between the adjacent metal plate and the metal plate for the pump chamber (hereinafter, referred to as the intermediate portion) are separated from each other and subjected to diffusion bonding so that the inner- .

According to the above aspect, since the passage forming holes are arranged outside the pump chamber hole as viewed in plan, all of the plurality of metal plates are subjected to diffusion bonding so that even when a metal plate for a pump room having a pump chamber hole is interposed, Pressure can be applied to the portion around the hole for forming the passage.

Therefore, according to this aspect, it is possible to provide the pump unit in which the inlet side connecting passage and the outlet side connecting passage are appropriately formed.

Specifically, in the above-described manufacturing method of the pump unit, in the preparing step, a near metal plate disposed in the vicinity of the pump chamber metal plate among the introduction-side specifying metal plate and the output-side specifying metal plate, Side metal plate having only a plurality of passage forming holes in addition to the introduction-side defining hole or the leading-side defining hole to form an outlet-side connecting passage, and in the joining step, And a second joining step of joining the first joining step and the second joining step in a state in which the plurality of passage forming holes are arranged outside the pump room hole, And the one bonded in the first bonding step is diffused And a second joining step for joining the first joining step and the second joining step.

According to this aspect, by dividing the joining step into the first joining step and the second joining step, it is possible to form the inner arrangement part in the first joining step, and even when the metal plate for the pump room having the pump room hole is interposed, In the process, pressure can be applied around the passage forming hole.

Here, even in the case where a near metal plate having a passage forming hole disposed outside the pump room hole at the time of planarization as described above is used, another metal plate having a hole at a position overlapping with the passage forming hole in a plan view Sometimes it can not be avoided. In this case, even when the above-described manufacturing method is employed, it becomes difficult to perform diffusion bonding around the hole for forming the passage of the adjacent metal plate.

Therefore, in the pump unit, the plurality of metal plates may have an adjacent metal plate joined to a surface of the proximity metal plate near the metal plate for the pump chamber, and the adjacent metal plate may include a plurality of through- And a communication hole having a peripheral edge which is in close contact with the periphery of the forming hole.

According to this aspect, since both of the metal plates are diffusion-bonded in a state in which the peripheral portion of the first passage forming hole of the adjacent metal plate and the peripheral portion of the communication hole of the adjacent metal plate are in close contact with each other, a hole is formed at a position overlapping the first passage forming hole The leakage of the fluid from the connecting portion between the first passage forming hole and the communication hole can be suppressed by the close contact even when a different metal plate having the same shape is used.

Specifically, in the above-described manufacturing method of the pump unit, in the preparing step, an adjacent metal plate provided with a communication hole having a peripheral portion which can be brought into close contact with the peripheral portion of the first passage forming hole among the plurality of passage forming holes, In the second joining step, a method of joining the adjacent metal plate to the surface of the adjacent metal plate near the metal plate for the pump room in a state in which the periphery of the first passage forming hole and the peripheral edge of the communication hole are in close contact with each other can do.

According to this aspect, even when another metal plate having a hole at a position overlapping with the first passage forming hole is used, in the second joining step, the periphery of the first passage forming hole and the peripheral edge of the communication hole are in close contact with each other By diffusion bonding the metal plate and the adjacent metal plate, leakage from the connection portion between the first passage forming hole and the communication hole can be suppressed.

Here, the movable region of the valve-side diaphragm can be defined by the recess formed in the metal plate adjacent thereto. In this case, it is preferable to set the concave portion (the area of the movable region of the valve-side diaphragm) as large as possible in order to increase the responsiveness to the pressure of the valve-side diaphragm. On the other hand, the size of the pump unit needs to be reduced by making the connection passage connected to the recess smaller than the recess. In order to meet such a demand, the cross-sectional area of the passage changes between the connection passage and the concave portion, so that the distribution of the flow rate in the passage extending from the concave portion to the connection passage is not constant. As a result, for example, in a situation where a liquid is flowing as a fluid, the air stays in the passage, which may lower the flow rate accuracy.

Therefore, as the pump unit, the plurality of metal plates include a valve-side diaphragm metal plate including the valve-side diaphragm, and a regulating portion joined to the valve-side diaphragm metal plate to define a movable region of the valve- Wherein the metal plate for valve-side diaphragm is connected to the prescribed concave portion on the outside of the defining portion in a plane view of the pump unit along the stacking direction, The concave metal plate being connected to the prescribed concave portion on the outside of the specified portion in a plan view and being connected to the specified concave portion on a second connection And the prescribed concave portion has a hole, And a pair of extending portions each extending from the first connecting hole and the second connecting hole to the first connecting hole and the second connecting hole, Side diaphragm, a protruding portion protruding from the bottom surface of the prescribed concave portion toward the valve-side diaphragm at a position overlapping with the prescribed portion on a line connecting the first connection hole and the second connection hole.

The specified concave portion of the concave metal plate including the pair of extended portions and the prescribed portion changes in cross sectional area between the first connection hole and the second connection hole in a plan view. Specifically, the cross-sectional area of the prescribed concave portion increases from the first connection hole toward the specified portion in plan view, and the sectional area of the specified concave portion from the specified portion toward the second connection hole becomes small.

Here, in this embodiment, in a plan view, a protruding portion protruding from the bottom surface of the prescribed concave portion to the valve-side diaphragm side at a position overlapping with the prescribed portion on the line connecting the first connection hole and the second connection hole, Respectively. As a result, the protruding portion is provided at the portion where the flow path cross-sectional area is largest in the specified concave portion formed in the concave metal plate as described above, so that the cross-sectional area of the portion is reduced, and the unevenness of the flow velocity distribution in the specified concave portion can be suppressed.

Therefore, it is possible to suppress the unevenness of the distribution of the flow velocity within the specified concave portion, so that it is possible to suppress the retention of the air in the situation where the liquid is flowing as the fluid, for example, and the lowering of the flow rate accuracy can be suppressed.

Here, the piezoelectric element may have a connection portion for connecting a power source.

In this case, for example, the connection portion of the piezoelectric element can be directly brought into contact with the diaphragm on the pump side, and the power supply can be electrically connected to the plurality of metal plates.

However, since the discharge mechanism and the valve mechanism are formed of metal, when a power source is connected to the pump unit as described above, when the fluid in the pump chamber has conductivity, a current flows through the fluid, There is a possibility that a problem may occur.

Therefore, in the pump unit, the plurality of metal plates has a metal plate for a pump-side diaphragm including the pump-side diaphragm, the piezoelectric element has a connecting portion for connecting a power source, It is preferable that a surface to be connected electrically connected to the connection portion is formed on the surface opposite to the pump chamber with an insulating layer interposed therebetween.

According to this aspect, it is possible to prevent a current from flowing to the fluid in the pump chamber by the insulating layer, so that the pump unit can be applied to a use where the flow of the current to the fluid is restricted (for example, a chemical liquid infusion pump for medical use) .

Specifically, in the above-described manufacturing method of the pump unit, the preparing step includes preparing a pump-side diaphragm metal plate including the pump-side diaphragm, and the manufacturing method of the pump unit includes: Further comprising a layer forming step of forming a layer to be connected via an insulating layer on an opposite surface of the piezoelectric element, wherein in the attaching step, in a state in which the connecting portion provided in the piezoelectric element is electrically connected to the connected layer, Is attached to the metal plate for the pump-side diaphragm.

According to this aspect, after the insulating layer and the connected layer are formed in the layer forming step, the piezoelectric element is attached to the metal plate for the pump-side diaphragm in such a state that the connecting portion is electrically connected to the connected layer, It is possible to manufacture a pump unit capable of preventing flow.

When the pump chamber has a circular shape in a plan view, the relief valve is arranged at the center of the pump chamber in a plan view, and the plurality of introduction valves are arranged in line with a straight line passing through the center of the pump chamber in plan view Can be deployed. This makes it possible to flow the fluid evenly from a plurality of places around the relief valve to the relief valve, so that sediment of the fluid in the pump chamber can be reduced. Therefore, for example, it is possible to alleviate the inconvenience that the air stays in the pump chamber when the liquid is flowing as the fluid and the flow accuracy is lowered.

On the other hand, since the introduction valve closes the introduction passage by making use of the rigidity of the metal plate, there is a fear that a minute leak through the introduction passage may occur even when the introduction valve is closed. Therefore, when the number of the introduction valves is large, the integrated leak amount of the fluid through the introduction valve is increased, which may lower the flow rate precision.

Therefore, in the pump unit, the pump chamber has a circular shape at a plan view of the pump unit along the stacking direction, and the take-out valve is disposed at the center of the pump chamber at the time of plan view, It is preferable that the one introduction valve includes only two introduction valves disposed at positions symmetrical with respect to a straight line passing through the center of the pump chamber in a plan view.

According to this aspect, only two relief valves are provided at positions that are symmetrical with respect to a straight line passing through the center in a plan view. As a result, it is possible to suppress the clogging of the fluid in the pump chamber and to suppress the increase of the leakage amount through the introduction valve to the utmost.

The method of manufacturing a pump unit according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein in the preparing step, a plurality of metal plates are connected to form a plurality of metal plates, and in the joining step, And the manufacturing method of the pump unit further includes a separation step of separating the coupling body from the connecting metal plate after the bonding step.

According to this aspect, since the plurality of pump units can be manufactured without performing the joining step several times, the manufacturing efficiency of the pump unit can be further improved.

Claims (15)

As a pump unit,
A pump having a piezoelectric element and a discharge mechanism for discharging the fluid in accordance with the operation of the piezoelectric element;
And a valve mechanism attached to the pump,
The discharge mechanism includes a pump body, a pump-side diaphragm for partitioning the pump chamber between the pump body and the pump body, at least one introduction valve provided in an introduction passage formed in the pump body to be connected to the pump chamber, And an outlet valve provided in an outlet passage formed in the pump body,
Wherein the valve mechanism includes a valve mechanism body having an inlet side connecting passage connected to the introduction passage and an outlet side connecting passage connected to the outlet passage, A valve-side diaphragm provided in the main body,
Wherein the introduction valve opens when the pressure on the upstream side of the introduction valve is higher than the pressure in the pump chamber,
Wherein the relief valve opens when the pressure in the pump chamber is higher than the pressure on the downstream side of the relief valve,
The valve-side diaphragm regulates the flow of the fluid through the outlet side connection passage when the pressure in the inlet side connection passage is higher than the pressure in the outlet side connection passage,
Wherein the discharge mechanism and the valve mechanism each have a plurality of metal plates diffusively joined to each other in a stacked state in a predetermined stacking direction and are fixed to each other by diffusion bonding. The method according to claim 1,
The valve mechanism body further comprises a valve seat for regulating the flow of the fluid through the outlet side connection passage by the valve side diaphragm being in contact therewith,
The valve-side diaphragm is provided with an interval from the valve seat, and has elasticity capable of being deformed when the pressure in the inlet-side connection passage is higher than the pressure in the outlet- . The method according to claim 1 or 2,
Wherein the plurality of metal plates comprises a metal plate for a pump chamber in which a pump chamber hole for defining the pump chamber is formed, a metal plate for a valve-side diaphragm including the valve-side diaphragm, Side guide passage for guiding the valve-side diaphragm to the inlet-side connection passage side, and an inlet-side regulating hole for regulating the movable region to the outlet-side connection passage side of the valve- And a leading-side specifying metal plate on which a leading-side specifying hole is formed,
And the introduction-side defining hole and the output-side defining hole are disposed inside the pump chamber hole when viewed in a plan view (plan view) of the pump unit along the stacking direction. The method of claim 3,
A metal plate near the metal plate for the pump room, of the introduction-side specifying metal plate and the drawing-out specifying metal plate, is provided with the introduction side defining hole or the leading side defining hole Only a plurality of passage forming holes are provided,
And the plurality of passage forming holes are disposed outside the pump chamber hole in the plan view. The method of claim 4,
Wherein the plurality of metal plates has an adjacent metal plate bonded to a surface of the adjacent metal plate near the metal plate for the pump chamber,
Wherein the adjacent metal plate has a communication hole having a peripheral edge which is in close contact with the peripheral portion of the first passage forming hole out of the plurality of passage forming holes. The method according to claim 1 or 2,
Wherein the plurality of metal plates comprises a metal plate for a valve-side diaphragm including the valve-side diaphragm, and a concave metal plate formed with a prescribed concave portion joined to the valve-side diaphragm metal plate and defining a movable region of the valve- / RTI >
Wherein the valve-side metal plate for diaphragm is connected to the prescribed concave portion outside the prescribed portion in a plane view of the pump unit along the stacking direction, and at the same time, Lt; / RTI &
Wherein said concave metal plate has a second connection hole which is connected to said prescribed concave portion on the outside of said prescribed portion in plan view and which is smaller than said specified portion in plan view,
Wherein the prescribed concave portion extends from the prescribed portion to the first connection hole and the second connection hole at the time of planarization and has a shape tapering toward the first connection hole and the second connection hole Having an extension of the pair,
The concave metal plate has a projecting portion projecting from the bottom surface of the prescribed concave portion toward the valve-side diaphragm at a position overlapping the prescribed portion on a line connecting the first connection hole and the second connection hole in a plan view, . The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
Wherein the plurality of metal plates has a metal plate for a pump-side diaphragm including the pump-side diaphragm,
The piezoelectric element has a connecting portion for connecting a power source,
And a connection layer electrically connected to the connection portion is formed on the surface of the metal plate for the diaphragm for pump side opposite to the pump chamber via an insulating layer. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 7,
Wherein the pump chamber has a circular shape in a plan view of the pump unit along the stacking direction,
Wherein the relief valve is disposed at the center of the pump chamber in a plan view,
Wherein the at least one introduction valve includes only two introduction valves disposed at positions symmetrical with respect to a straight line passing through the center of the pump chamber in plan view. A manufacturing method for manufacturing the pump unit according to claim 1,
A preparation step of preparing a plurality of metal plates for forming the discharge mechanism and the valve mechanism,
A joining step of subjecting the plurality of metal plates to diffusion bonding;
And attaching the piezoelectric element to the discharge mechanism. The method of claim 9,
The valve mechanism body further comprises a valve seat for regulating the flow of the fluid through the outlet side connection passage by the valve side diaphragm being in contact therewith,
Wherein the preparation step includes a valve-side diaphragm metal plate including the valve-side diaphragm, a metal sheet for a valve seat having the valve seat, and a gap hole penetrating the gap-use metal sheet in the stacking direction as a gap- A gap metal plate was prepared,
In the joining step, diffusion bonding is performed in a state in which the valve seat and the gap hole overlap in the stacking direction, and the gap metal plate is sandwiched between the valve-side diaphragm metal plate and the valve seat metal plate,
Wherein the valve-side diaphragm has an elasticity capable of deforming and contacting the valve seat when the pressure in the inlet-side connection passage is higher than the pressure in the outlet-side connection passage. The method of claim 9,
Wherein the preparation step includes a metal plate for a pump chamber in which a pump chamber hole for defining the pump chamber is formed, a valve-side diaphragm metal plate including the valve-side diaphragm, and a movable area defining the movable area toward the inlet- Side regulating metal plate on which the introduction side regulating hole is formed and an outflow regulating metal plate on which the regulating side regulating hole defining the movable region of the valve side diaphragm to the regulating side connection passage side is formed,
Wherein the joining step performs diffusion bonding in a state in which the introduction-side defining hole and the output-side defining hole are disposed inside the pump room hole in a plan view of the pump unit along the stacking direction Gt; The method of claim 11,
Side metal plate and the leading-side specifying metal plate, the provisional metal plate being disposed near the metal plate for the pump chamber, wherein the introduction-side connecting passage and the leading- Preparing the proximal metal plate having only a plurality of passage forming holes in addition to the prescribed holes or the leading-
Wherein the joining step includes a first joining step of subjecting the metal sheet to lamination between the adjacent metal plate and the metal plate for the pump room among the plurality of metal plates by diffusion bonding, And a second bonding step of diffusing bonding of the metal plates joined in the first bonding step and those bonded in the first bonding step among the plurality of metal plates while being disposed outside the first bonding step. The method of claim 12,
Preparing an adjacent metal plate having a communication hole having a peripheral portion which can be brought into close contact with the periphery of the first passage forming hole out of the plurality of passage forming holes,
Wherein the second joining step includes a step of joining the adjacent metal plate to a face of the adjacent metal plate near the metal plate for the pump chamber in a state in which the periphery of the first passage forming hole and the peripheral edge of the communication hole are in close contact with each other, / RTI > The method according to any one of claims 9 to 13,
In the preparation step, a metal plate for a pump-side diaphragm including the pump-side diaphragm is prepared,
The manufacturing method of the pump unit further includes a layer forming step of forming a layer to be connected via an insulating layer on a surface of the metal plate for a pump side diaphragm opposite to the pump chamber,
Wherein the attaching step attaches the piezoelectric element to the metal plate for the diaphragm for the pump in a state in which the connecting portion provided in the piezoelectric element is electrically connected to the connected layer. The method according to any one of claims 9 to 14,
In the preparing step, a plurality of connecting metal plates, each of which is connected to each of the plurality of metal plates,
In the joining step, a plurality of joined bodies of the discharge mechanism and the valve mechanism are formed by diffusion bonding the connecting metal plates,
Wherein the manufacturing method of the pump unit further comprises a separation step of separating the coupling body from the connecting metal plate after the bonding step.

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